A NEW Beginning - Book 2

Chapter 9 - Shiro

I had helped Adam to bed, and checked on a drunk Lex before heading to the kitchen. Curtis scraped the plates and loaded them into the dishwasher, while I made us chamomile tea.

We put more comfortable clothes on, then finally settled down on the couch, tea in hand, winding down after a long day before we put ourselves to bed.

Curtis cuddled up to my left side, head against my shoulder, legs across my lap, as I rubbed small circles on his lower back.

There was movement in the hallway, then Lacey, our beautiful lilac point birman kitten came through the doorway. She rubbed herself against the door jamb, before sauntering over to join us, trilling a hello as she jumped up into Curtis' lap.

"Oh hello, baby," I cooed as she climbed up my chest to nuzzle my chin, "You finally decided to come out of hiding?"

"Who's a pretty kitty?" Curtis asked, scratching behind her ear, "Did you eat your dinner?"

She meowed back at him, pushing into his hand, then snuggling into the space between us.

We both petted her absentmindedly, content in our silence.

"What a day!" Curtis sighed, stretching out, curving his back over the arm of the couch before sitting back up again. Lacey stood up, annoyed at being unsettled, turned around, and sat back down again. "Although dinner was good in the end."

"Mmm," I hummed. "The conversation was less than ideal though."

Curtis chuckled. "You've known Pidge for at least 5 years, and she's never been subtle. She's an adult now, you're just going to have to learn to deal with it."

"Doesn't mean I have to be happy about it," I huffed.

"No wonder they call you dad."

"Don't you start!"

"You need to ease up, Taki, I know you feel responsible for them, but you're not actually that much older than them. You're their friend, you don't need to come to their rescue all the time." He said, sitting up and cupping my face in his hand. "Speaking of, what was Keith's deal?"

"Oh, just this party he's putting together." I replied, "He is stressing. Wants to make it perfect for Lance. He's so soft for that boy."

"If you say so," he said, as he put his head back down, "But I bet there was something more."

"Nope, just the party." I answered.

"Not taking me up on my bet then? Interesting."

"There's no bet to be made, Cat." I said, shaking my head, "Oh, and I told Keith he could come over tuesday night while Lance is at work, and we would help him with the planning?"

"Yeah, that's fine, don't get to involved though, we've got our own stuff to finish organising."

"I know, I was more thinking it was something else to keep Adam busy, you know how much he loves Lance." Curtis nodded, "Did I tell you I rang Ronnie?"

"You said you were going to," he replied, "What did she say?"

"They're going to try and get here as soon as possible. Her, Axca, and Noah."

"Ooooh, Noah! I can't wait to meet him!"

"Me either." I admitted, " I know Lance is itching to give him the once over. He doesn't like the idea of Ronnie dating someone he hasn't met."

"Yeah, and I hope Rosa and Dante have got their head around the whole concept of Ronnie being polyamous. I know it threw them for a while."

"Well, they've agreed to let them stay there?"

"Yeah, I guess that's a good sign. And that whole family is queer, I don't know why they keep getting surprised."

"Even Luis?" I asked.

"Definitely Luis," he affirmed, "I've never been wrong!"

"I guess," I shrugged, "But I guess this is just a whole new level. It's not an easy concept for some, especially when you marry your highschool sweetheart, and they've been the only person you've loved for close to 30 years."

"True," Curtis agreed. "I'm just glad they're coming early. Adam needs the distraction. He hasn't been himself." He paused, weighing up his words, "Did you notice he wasn't drinking tonight?"

"Yeah," I replied, "I also noticed Lex was drinking his share." I took my hand of his back, and started running it through his hair. "I'm surprised she even made it to bed. When I checked on her she was fast asleep. Shoes off, clothes on, flat on the bed like a starfish. I made sure to turn her on her side. She's gonna regret drinking that much in the morning."

"Can you blame her though? If it was me, I'm sure I would be trying to forget too."

"Did she tell you much more about what happened?" I asked, squeezing him a little tighter.

"No, she was too much of a mess, Taki. I didn't want to push her."

"Yeah," I replied, "That's understandable. We'll have to give her her space, hopefully she'll open up soon."

"I'm sure she will when she's ready."

"Yeah," I agreed, "So. We officially have a new house member then?"

"I hope you didn't mind?" he asked, looking up at me, "It all happened so fast."

"Cat," I replied, "You know I would never turn Lex, or anyone in that situation, away. I would give her my own bed, and the clothes off my back before I let her go back there. And I love that you took her in without a second thought."

"My lord, I love you Takashi," he said as he got up from his position beside me, sending Lacey running. He straddled my lap, taking my face in his hands. He paused for a second, looking deep into my eyes, "I was thinking, maybe, when things calm down, maybe we could take in a more permanent house member?"

"What are you saying, Cat?" I asked, trying not to read too much into what he was saying.

"I want a baby Taki," he replied. Straight to the point, as always.

I kissed him softly, and then with more... more everything.

"Are you crying, Taki?" he asked softly.

I wiped my cheek, and looked down it my hand, puzzled.

"You're just so beautiful," I replied. "You know this is going to take a lot of work, right? Before we even get a baby?"

"Is that a yes?" he asked, unsure, apparently still confused by my tears.

"Curtis Harrison-soon-to-be-Shirogane, that is definitely a yes."

A/N: I'm not sure if I'm going to continue on Wattpad, I don't think anyone's reading here. If you are, let me know, otherwise, the story is only going to be published on AO3 from now on, find me under letmebelex.

Okay, that's a wrap for day 1, but definitely not this series! Books 1, 2, and 3 will be continued in books 4, 5, and 6 respectfully, just to make things easier to read and run more smoothly (still not sure if it's going to be a day per book, or maybe a week, I'll figure it out).

Don't forget to check out books 1 and 2!

Intro's and flashbacks are pretty much done, so things are going to start progressing quicker now, and I've got so much planned! Can't wait for y'all to read it!

I'm trying to get on a posting schedule, hopefully every Saturday, but if I fall behind, feel free to come kick my butt on Tumblr, or just come have a chat! I like to leave little snippets and teasers over there too, as well as little sketches and character bios.